| The Professor Says... | Interpretation... |
|---|
| You'll be using one of the leading textbooks in the field. | I used it as a grad student. |
| If you follow these few simple rules, you'll do fine in the course. | If you don't need any sleep, you'll do fine in the course. |
| The gist of what the author is saying is what's most important. | I don't understand the details either. |
| Various authorities agree that... | My hunch is that... |
| The answer to your question is beyond the scope of this class. | I don't know. |
| You'll have to see me during my office hours for a thorough answer to your question. | I don't know. |
| In answer to your question, you must recognize that there are several disparate points of view. | I really don't know. |
| Today we are going to discuss a most important topic. | Today we are going to discuss my dissertation. |
| Unfortunately, we haven't the time to consider all of the people who made contributions to this field. | I disagree with what roughly half of the people in this field have said. |
| We can continue this discussion outside of class. | 1. I'm tired of this - let's quit.
2. You're winning the arguement - let's quit |
| Today we'll let a member of the class lead the discussion. It will be a good educational experience. | I stayed out too late last night and didn't have time to prepare a lecture. |
| Any questions? | I'm ready to let you go. |
| The implications of this study are clear. | I don't know what it means either, but there'll be a question about it on the test. |
| The test will be 50-questions multiple choice. | The test will be 60-questions multiple guess, plus three short-answer questions (1000 words or more) and no one will score above 55 per cent. |
| The test scores were generally good. | Some of you managed a C+. |
| The test scores were a little below my expectations. | Where was the party last night? |
| Some of you could have done better. | Everyone flunked. |
| Before we begin the lecture for today, are there any questions about previous material? | Has anyone opened the book yet? |
| According to my sources... | According to the guy who taught this class last year... |
| It's been very rewarding to teach this class. | I hope they find someone else to teach it next year. |
-- J. Timothy Petersik from the Chronicle of Higher Education
